Luke Warren has spent his life researching wolves. He has written about them, studied their habits intensively, and even lived with them for extended periods of time. In many ways, Luke understands wolf dynamics better than those of his own family: his wife, Georgie, has left him, finally giving up on their lonely marriage; his son, Edward, twenty-four, fled six years ago, leaving behind a shattered relationship with his father. Edward understands that some things cannot be fixed, though memories of his domineering father still inflict pain. Then comes a frantic phone call: Luke has been gravely injured in a car accident with Edward's younger sister, Cara.

Suddenly everything changes: Edward must return home to face the father he walked out on at age eighteen. He and Cara have to decide their father's fate together. Though there's no easy answer, questions abound: What secrets have Edward and his sister kept from each other? What hidden motives inform their need to let their father die...or to try to keep him alive? What would Luke himself want? How can any family member make such a decision in the face of guilt, pain, or both? And most importantly, to what extent have they all forgotten what a wolf never forgets: that each member of a pack needs the others, and that sometimes survival means sacrifice?

Another tour de force by Picoult, Lone Wolf is an evocative exploration of the nature of a family: the love, protection, and strength it can offer--and the price we might have to pay for those gifts. What happens when the hope that should sustain a family is the very thing tearing it apart?

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This is the first book by Jodi Picoult that I have read. I'd always just assumed that she wrote those romance-y "women's lit" popular fiction novels, with Important Messages about Feelings and Relationships. And while there is a bit of the Important Messages thing going on here, it's also a well-researched novel, with good information about wild animals (wolves in particular), head injuries and comas, and the legal system. I thought, at first, that this was going to be a book with a political or moral stance on the subject of euthanasia, but while the author presents the arguments for and against, she makes no judgments about either side. Instead, she does a good job showing how difficult a decision this is for the patient's loves ones.

What a great way to examine family drama, by witnessing side by side the roles of the tightly woven, intensely loyal wolf pack with the roles members of a family play in the drama that their stories create. Once again, Jodi Picoult’s deep research and vivid characters lead us to truly think about controversial subjects and matters of the heart from the points of view of everyone involved.
What is the true value of any one human life, and can any of us be the judge of whether/why/under what circumstances that life should be artificially sustained? (Please make that decision for yourself now - as only YOU can - and save your loved ones the agony of trying to untangle their wishes from yours in order to decide for you).
Can a human really join a Wolf Pack and study it from within? My husband seldom reads fiction, but he so enjoyed reading just the chapters in Luke’s voice that he bought the book about the real person upon whom that character was based, "The Man Who Lived With Wolves," by Shaun Ellis.
Jodi Picoult is one of very few novelists whose characters are so memorable that I have no trouble following the story even as it is told in different voices in each chapter.

A family saga about secrets, lies, remorse, and regret that all come together when the husband/father figure is in a tragic accident. The accident first pushes the family apart but as the secrets of the past start coming out, what's happened in the past is made more clear, and the family has to come to some agreement. I didn't like the father figure. He was portrayed as a selfish, egotistical, unsympathetic man who cared more for his wolf family than his human family.

Stunningly written book. There is a wolf sanctuary in Conroe Texas where I want to go for "howl night". The information written about the pack, the rankings, the job of each wolf, and the manner in which they conduct themselves is intriguing.
Makes me want to go to the sanctuary even more.

As usual Picoult tells a great story. I like the method she uses of telling the story from multiple voices. This is especially effective on audio when there are multiple narrators - great listening experience. However, I was not as compelled by this story as some of her other works. Maybe the topic - euthanasia - has been overdone? Maybe I just didn't like the characters as well? Not my favorite Picoult read but I'm not sorry I read it.

Great novel - particularly loved all the chapters about wolf life and behaviour, and wolf-human interactions, both in the wild and in a reserve.

cinseg1
Apr 30, 2013

Another powerful family drama by Ms.Picoult. A heart-wrenching look at members of a family that come together after years of separation to let an often neglectful father die. Poignant and insightful. No one writes about family drama/dynamics like Jodi Picoult.

Summary

A prodigal son who left his family after an irreparable fight with his father learns that his dad lies comatose in a hospital. He fights with his sister about the next steps in this heart wrenching look at the intersection of medical science and moral choices.

Luke Warren has spent decades learning the inner workings of wolf packs. Yet his relationship with his own family is strained. Divorced from his wife and estranged from his son, Edward, Luke remains close to his daughter, Cara. When the two are involved in a car accident that leaves Luke in a coma, Edward must return home to make important medical decisions regarding life-sustaining measures. With facts that aren't always clear and emotional baggage getting in the way, Cara and Edward find themselves on opposite sides regarding what is best for their father. VERDICT Picoult (Sing You Home) once again has written a compelling story involving current issues and family drama with a unique twist. The inclusion of Luke's relationship with wolves adds an element of depth, and details like these are why readers find Picoult's books impossible to put down.

Cara and Edward Warren have very opposite relationships with their father, Luke. Luke Warren lives many lives, from being a member of wolf packs, to being a human dad, he is the center of the series of events throughout this book. The comparison of human life and characteristics, to the life of wolf packs and their instincts. This is a must read.